Kwok Tung Cheung | University of Dayton (original) (raw)
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Papers by Kwok Tung Cheung
Global business & economics anthology, Dec 30, 2020
Global Business & Economics Anthology, 2021
In the past decade, interest in greed among empirical business scholars has emerged. It starts wi... more In the past decade, interest in greed among empirical business scholars has emerged. It starts with the trailblazing attempt to analyze greed by Wang and Murnighan (2011), followed by the development of the Dispositional Greed Scale by Seuntjens et. al. (2015a, 2015b), which serves as a basis for the research done by Zhu et. al. (2019) and Bao et. al. (2020). However, since Seuntjens’ work, the overwhelming focus has been on greed as a disposition to “always want more and never being satisfied with what one currently has” (Seuntjens et. al., 2015b). Independently, Cheung (2019) proposed a more sophisticated philosophical analysis of greed, which argues that there are three dimensions of greed, and its dimension of unfairness has largely been neglected. This article reports on our investigation of that neglected dimension of greed. Our cross-cultural study (n=395) shows that when the rating of greediness was not very high, the perception of greed went hand in hand with the perception...
European Journal of Social Sciences Education and Research, 2017
Whether Affirmative Action is a proper way to accomplish social justice in terms of fairness has ... more Whether Affirmative Action is a proper way to accomplish social justice in terms of fairness has been an ongoing debate in the United States. Late philosopher Ronald Dworkin was a vocal supporter of Category 4 Affirmative Action, in which preferential treatments for minorities is justified. Dworkin emphasized a forward-looking approach as a means to achieve social justice and overall fairness. In his view, it is not sufficient for black applicants to enjoy preferential treatment now just because in the past their ancestors suffered due to slavery. Rather, a successful argument for affirmative action programs must include a forward-looking justification. To be specific, this policy promises a better educational environment in terms of diversity and promotes a less racially conscious society for all citizens. Additionally, Dworkin often cited the study entitled The Shape of the River to substantiate his claim that special treatment for minorities could amend social injustice and produ...
Is the notion of greed popular in today's world? The answer is straightforwardly yes. Here is a r... more Is the notion of greed popular in today's world? The answer is straightforwardly yes. Here is a recent example. Daraprim is a drug approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) in 1953. It has been used to treat toxoplasmosis, a parasite infection which is life-threatening to babies born to infected women during pregnancy, as well as to people with compromised immune systems. As of early 2015, this drug was selling at 13.50pertablet.Shortlyafterthestart−upcompanyTuringPharmaceuticalsacquiredthedruginAugust,itsCEOMartinShkrelidecidedtoraisethepriceto13.50 per tablet. Shortly after the start-up company Turing Pharmaceuticals acquired the drug in August, its CEO Martin Shkreli decided to raise the price to 13.50pertablet.Shortlyafterthestart−upcompanyTuringPharmaceuticalsacquiredthedruginAugust,itsCEOMartinShkrelidecidedtoraisethepriceto750 per tablet. 1 In subsequent interviews, Shkreli promised to reduce the price and claimed that the income would be used to develop better treatments for toxoplasmosis: "I can see how it looks greedy, but I think there's a lot of altruistic properties to it." 2 This remark did not find much sympathy from the public. Strong reaction came within two days of the New York Times' report on Shkreli. BBC News suggested that Shkreli is "the most hated man in America." 3 The Washington Post called him "[a] new icon of modern greed" and ridiculed his choice of the word "altruistic." 4 Greed is not just found in individuals; it is also systemic. The banking crisis in 2008 showed that "the present system relies on motives of greed and acquisitiveness," claimed political economist Robert Skidelsky and his son philosopher Edward Skidelsky. 5 Government officials also are not shy to admit that greed is a problem. Alan Greenspan, the Chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve during 1987-2006, said to the Senate Banking Committee that "by the
Both of them were prolific speakers and authors. We are fully aware of the selective nature of th... more Both of them were prolific speakers and authors. We are fully aware of the selective nature of this paper, which is partly due to length limit. We believe that the scope of our paper is justified because the topic of this paper is highly focusedonly on how they understand greed and competition in business.
Journal of Religion and Business Ethics, 2021
Today it is commonly believed that capitalism is driven by greed. However, greed is condemned by ... more Today it is commonly believed that capitalism is driven by greed. However, greed is condemned by various religious traditions. In this paper we compare how Mahatma Gandhi, a Hindu, and Michael Novak, a Catholic, see the possibilities of engaging in competitive business practice without the motive of greed. This discussion suggests a need to distinguish greed from self-interest. We therefore analyze whether it makes a difference in moral evaluation to claim that the real driving force of capitalism is self-interest but not greed. Our analysis makes use of the rational-care theory of self-interest developed by Stephen Darwall, the discussion of which has been absent in the business ethics literature. Our conclusion is that there is a quantitative but not qualitative difference between the two.
Global Business & Economics Anthology, 2020
People commonly believe that greed is the driving force of capitalism, whereas some business scho... more People commonly believe that greed is the driving force of capitalism, whereas some business scholars argue that it should be self-interest. This distinction is significant to them because acquisitive behaviors motivated by self-interest can be seen as morally neutral and sometimes even virtuous, whereas those motivated by greed are definitely vicious. In this essay, I attempt to show that greed and self-interest are not that different. Thus, the ethical status of competitive business behaviors is not clear. I will first explain why some business scholars believe that the driving force of capitalism is self-interest but not greed. Then I present more sophisticated concepts of greed, self-interest and egoism, so that we may make a sensible comparison that leads to my conclusion.
European Journal of Social Sciences Education and Research, 2017
Whether Affirmative Action is a proper way to accomplish social justice in terms of fairness has ... more Whether Affirmative Action is a proper way to accomplish social justice in terms of fairness has been an ongoing debate in the United States. Late philosopher Ronald Dworkin was a vocal supporter of Category 4 Affirmative Action, in which preferential treatments for minorities is justified. Dworkin emphasized a forward-looking approach as a means to achieve social justice and overall fairness. In his view, it is not sufficient for black applicants to enjoy preferential treatment now just because in the past their ancestors suffered due to slavery. Rather, a successful argument for affirmative action programs must include a forward-looking justification. To be specific, this policy promises a better educational environment in terms of diversity and promotes a less racially conscious society for all citizens. Additionally, Dworkin often cited the study entitled The Shape of the River to substantiate his claim that special treatment for minorities could amend social injustice and produce fairer outcomes. This article attempts to evaluate this Dworkinian theory on both the principle and practical levels. It concluded that while a neutral or non-interventional policy is insufficient to achieve racial equality, interventions in terms of special treatments and soft quotas are not yet shown to be fair in practice.
Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 2017
Trudy Govier argued against the existence of moral monsters -- people who had committed extreme c... more Trudy Govier argued against the existence of moral monsters -- people who had committed extreme crimes and could not be morally transformed. She asserted that one should hate the evil deeds but not the evil-doer, because a human does not lose his/her humanity just because of what he/she did. She further argued that this approach conforms to the Christian tradition. This article examines Govier's arguments from psychological, philosophical, and theological perspectives.
Journal of Religion and Business Ethics, 2019
There is a surprising lack of discussion on greed in business ethics. Whether in popular textbook... more There is a surprising lack of discussion on greed in business ethics. Whether in popular textbooks or in the literature, there is hardly any philosophical explication of greed. In this paper, I investigate the popular idea that greedy people desire more and more, the Christian idea of avarice as in the seven deadly sins, and Aristotle’s idea of pleonexia which has incorporated a condition of justice. These three different ideas are respectively psychological, metaphysical and socio-political. I propose the three of them should be integrated to give a concept of greed that is relevant and useful in the contemporary world in which business and capitalism are ubiquitous.
Global business & economics anthology, Dec 30, 2020
Global Business & Economics Anthology, 2021
In the past decade, interest in greed among empirical business scholars has emerged. It starts wi... more In the past decade, interest in greed among empirical business scholars has emerged. It starts with the trailblazing attempt to analyze greed by Wang and Murnighan (2011), followed by the development of the Dispositional Greed Scale by Seuntjens et. al. (2015a, 2015b), which serves as a basis for the research done by Zhu et. al. (2019) and Bao et. al. (2020). However, since Seuntjens’ work, the overwhelming focus has been on greed as a disposition to “always want more and never being satisfied with what one currently has” (Seuntjens et. al., 2015b). Independently, Cheung (2019) proposed a more sophisticated philosophical analysis of greed, which argues that there are three dimensions of greed, and its dimension of unfairness has largely been neglected. This article reports on our investigation of that neglected dimension of greed. Our cross-cultural study (n=395) shows that when the rating of greediness was not very high, the perception of greed went hand in hand with the perception...
European Journal of Social Sciences Education and Research, 2017
Whether Affirmative Action is a proper way to accomplish social justice in terms of fairness has ... more Whether Affirmative Action is a proper way to accomplish social justice in terms of fairness has been an ongoing debate in the United States. Late philosopher Ronald Dworkin was a vocal supporter of Category 4 Affirmative Action, in which preferential treatments for minorities is justified. Dworkin emphasized a forward-looking approach as a means to achieve social justice and overall fairness. In his view, it is not sufficient for black applicants to enjoy preferential treatment now just because in the past their ancestors suffered due to slavery. Rather, a successful argument for affirmative action programs must include a forward-looking justification. To be specific, this policy promises a better educational environment in terms of diversity and promotes a less racially conscious society for all citizens. Additionally, Dworkin often cited the study entitled The Shape of the River to substantiate his claim that special treatment for minorities could amend social injustice and produ...
Is the notion of greed popular in today's world? The answer is straightforwardly yes. Here is a r... more Is the notion of greed popular in today's world? The answer is straightforwardly yes. Here is a recent example. Daraprim is a drug approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) in 1953. It has been used to treat toxoplasmosis, a parasite infection which is life-threatening to babies born to infected women during pregnancy, as well as to people with compromised immune systems. As of early 2015, this drug was selling at 13.50pertablet.Shortlyafterthestart−upcompanyTuringPharmaceuticalsacquiredthedruginAugust,itsCEOMartinShkrelidecidedtoraisethepriceto13.50 per tablet. Shortly after the start-up company Turing Pharmaceuticals acquired the drug in August, its CEO Martin Shkreli decided to raise the price to 13.50pertablet.Shortlyafterthestart−upcompanyTuringPharmaceuticalsacquiredthedruginAugust,itsCEOMartinShkrelidecidedtoraisethepriceto750 per tablet. 1 In subsequent interviews, Shkreli promised to reduce the price and claimed that the income would be used to develop better treatments for toxoplasmosis: "I can see how it looks greedy, but I think there's a lot of altruistic properties to it." 2 This remark did not find much sympathy from the public. Strong reaction came within two days of the New York Times' report on Shkreli. BBC News suggested that Shkreli is "the most hated man in America." 3 The Washington Post called him "[a] new icon of modern greed" and ridiculed his choice of the word "altruistic." 4 Greed is not just found in individuals; it is also systemic. The banking crisis in 2008 showed that "the present system relies on motives of greed and acquisitiveness," claimed political economist Robert Skidelsky and his son philosopher Edward Skidelsky. 5 Government officials also are not shy to admit that greed is a problem. Alan Greenspan, the Chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve during 1987-2006, said to the Senate Banking Committee that "by the
Both of them were prolific speakers and authors. We are fully aware of the selective nature of th... more Both of them were prolific speakers and authors. We are fully aware of the selective nature of this paper, which is partly due to length limit. We believe that the scope of our paper is justified because the topic of this paper is highly focusedonly on how they understand greed and competition in business.
Journal of Religion and Business Ethics, 2021
Today it is commonly believed that capitalism is driven by greed. However, greed is condemned by ... more Today it is commonly believed that capitalism is driven by greed. However, greed is condemned by various religious traditions. In this paper we compare how Mahatma Gandhi, a Hindu, and Michael Novak, a Catholic, see the possibilities of engaging in competitive business practice without the motive of greed. This discussion suggests a need to distinguish greed from self-interest. We therefore analyze whether it makes a difference in moral evaluation to claim that the real driving force of capitalism is self-interest but not greed. Our analysis makes use of the rational-care theory of self-interest developed by Stephen Darwall, the discussion of which has been absent in the business ethics literature. Our conclusion is that there is a quantitative but not qualitative difference between the two.
Global Business & Economics Anthology, 2020
People commonly believe that greed is the driving force of capitalism, whereas some business scho... more People commonly believe that greed is the driving force of capitalism, whereas some business scholars argue that it should be self-interest. This distinction is significant to them because acquisitive behaviors motivated by self-interest can be seen as morally neutral and sometimes even virtuous, whereas those motivated by greed are definitely vicious. In this essay, I attempt to show that greed and self-interest are not that different. Thus, the ethical status of competitive business behaviors is not clear. I will first explain why some business scholars believe that the driving force of capitalism is self-interest but not greed. Then I present more sophisticated concepts of greed, self-interest and egoism, so that we may make a sensible comparison that leads to my conclusion.
European Journal of Social Sciences Education and Research, 2017
Whether Affirmative Action is a proper way to accomplish social justice in terms of fairness has ... more Whether Affirmative Action is a proper way to accomplish social justice in terms of fairness has been an ongoing debate in the United States. Late philosopher Ronald Dworkin was a vocal supporter of Category 4 Affirmative Action, in which preferential treatments for minorities is justified. Dworkin emphasized a forward-looking approach as a means to achieve social justice and overall fairness. In his view, it is not sufficient for black applicants to enjoy preferential treatment now just because in the past their ancestors suffered due to slavery. Rather, a successful argument for affirmative action programs must include a forward-looking justification. To be specific, this policy promises a better educational environment in terms of diversity and promotes a less racially conscious society for all citizens. Additionally, Dworkin often cited the study entitled The Shape of the River to substantiate his claim that special treatment for minorities could amend social injustice and produce fairer outcomes. This article attempts to evaluate this Dworkinian theory on both the principle and practical levels. It concluded that while a neutral or non-interventional policy is insufficient to achieve racial equality, interventions in terms of special treatments and soft quotas are not yet shown to be fair in practice.
Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 2017
Trudy Govier argued against the existence of moral monsters -- people who had committed extreme c... more Trudy Govier argued against the existence of moral monsters -- people who had committed extreme crimes and could not be morally transformed. She asserted that one should hate the evil deeds but not the evil-doer, because a human does not lose his/her humanity just because of what he/she did. She further argued that this approach conforms to the Christian tradition. This article examines Govier's arguments from psychological, philosophical, and theological perspectives.
Journal of Religion and Business Ethics, 2019
There is a surprising lack of discussion on greed in business ethics. Whether in popular textbook... more There is a surprising lack of discussion on greed in business ethics. Whether in popular textbooks or in the literature, there is hardly any philosophical explication of greed. In this paper, I investigate the popular idea that greedy people desire more and more, the Christian idea of avarice as in the seven deadly sins, and Aristotle’s idea of pleonexia which has incorporated a condition of justice. These three different ideas are respectively psychological, metaphysical and socio-political. I propose the three of them should be integrated to give a concept of greed that is relevant and useful in the contemporary world in which business and capitalism are ubiquitous.